Last Call! "Where on Eartha" Challenge

Last call for entries in my replay of Delorme's "Where on Eartha" challenge... See posting under Jan 2 for details. The winner who guesses the closest by Jan 31st wins one of my 8x10 prints of their choice.

Adorama Academy

It's been a while since the last time I checked the Adorama Academy Web site and if you haven't been there, it's probably time for a visit.

There's a huge number of short tutorial articles on various aspects of photography. For example, many of you have requested more information on flash techniques. They also have a lot of interesting Photoshop techniques. Take some time to check it out!

http://www.adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=academy

Tim Grey's Digital Darkroom Questions

If you'd like to learn more about Photoshop printing techniques, you need to subscribe to Tim Grey's free (almost) daily Digital Darkroom Questions (DDQ) email newsletter. Tim used to work for George Lepp's Digital Photography Institute, but recently found employment at Microsoft as their digital photography expert. He currently manages Microsoft's "Pro Photo" part of their Web (link below).

Pictured is Apple co-founder Steve Wozniac (l) and Tim Grey (r), who both attended the Portland NANPA Summit in 2004.

Tim will be leading a day-long digital workflow seminar at the Summit in Denver (www.nanpa.org) this coming February.

To subscribe to DDQ, go to http://www.timgrey.com/index.htm.

Microsoft pro Photo Web: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/prophoto/default.mspx.

Nikon School

The Nikon School is again holding two day-long workshops in Denver this year. I took this course a few years ago and was quite impressed with the level of instruction. I felt the cost was well worth it. Best of all, you don't need a Nikon camera to participate! :-)

• Nikon School of Photography: Introduction to Digital SLR Photography, Denver, Feb. 11, 2006. Cost $119. Includes Nikon School of Photography Handbook, Nikon Guide to SLR Photography and Nikon Guide to Digital Photography.
• Next Steps in Digital Photography: Streamlined Workflow Techniques, Denver, Feb. 12, 2006. Cost $159. Includes Nikon School of Photography Handbook and Nikon Guide to Creative Lighting techniques.

For further info, check out: http://www.nikonschool.com/. I'd advise registering quickly, as these sessions sell out fast.

National Geographic Traveler Workshops

As an avid traveler all my life, I've subscribed to the National Geographic Traveler Magazine for many years now and like it better than any other. They really do a first-class job!

When I heard they were going to hold a series of workshops all around the U.S. in partnership with Santa Fe Workshops, I jumped at the chance to learn from the masters. As I'm getting closer to retirement from my "day job", I expect to be writing more travel articles. We "baby boomers" are all about to enter retirement over the next few years and I believe there will be an insatiable demand for good quality travel information.

For more info check out: http://santafeworkshops.com/traveler/index.cfm. I'll be participating in the photo workshop in Houston (March) and writing workshop in Santa Fe (June).

Looking forward to having you younger folks help support my passion! :-)

Colorado Nature Photographers

I've been a member of the Naturephotographers.net (www.naturephotographers.net) for some years now - and recently joining the regional Colorado Nature photographers group. This is a group of serious amateur and professional nature photographers - most living along the Front Range area. They get together for improptue photo outings all year long. If you'd like to join a group of friendly like-minded folks, I'd encourage you to check out their forum section. If you join, you are also given an area to post your portfolio. They may be found at http://colorado.naturephotographers.net/index.shtml.

Their annual get together is happening Jan. 28th at 5:30 pm up in Denver. Check out the details on the forums section!

NANPA Deadline Extended

LATE BREAKING NEWS! - NANPA Earlybird registration extended through Jan 13th!

2006 NANPA SUMMIT - NANPA (North American Nature Photography Association) is a group of amateur and professional nature photographers, as well as representatives from the photo industry and photo editors. Each year we all get together for a week-long c! onference (or Summit) in various parts of the country - held around January or February. This year, it will be held in Denver!

I'd urge you to seriously consider participating in the program this year. You'll find numerous seminars presented by some of the biggest names in the business. There will also be a trade show with most of the major manufacturers displaying the latest photo equipment (genberally at discount prices!), along with photo tour companies and many others. Every day there will be keynote speakers and evening programs. You will also have a chance to network with others of similar interest, as well as neighboring with some of the big names in nature photography.

Check out the program at www.nanpa.org. The cost may seem a bit pricy at first, but I've found this conference to be well worth it. Early-bird pricing ends January 13th, so get registered right away!

Photo Stamps

Were you aware there was a company that will take your image and print a set of real postage stamps? Obviously, there's an extra charge for this, but for those "special" people in your life, cost is no object - right?

Check out: www.photo.stamps.com for more info...

DeLorme's "Where On Eartha" Challange - Replayed

I recently won the monthly (November) Delorme Professional "Where on Eartha" challange where they display some geographic feature in the world and have you try to identify it. Last November, they displayed the adjacent satellite photo (www.topobird.com) along with a flag. The challange was first to identify the location - then estimate the latitude and longitude of the flag; the closest estimate winning their professional mapping software.

I came within four feet!

Here's a quote from their December issue:

Where on Eartha™?
Thanks to all of you who responded to November's Where on Eartha challange, in which we asked you to tell us the coordinates of the flag in the TopoBird image. Most respondents recognized the location as and many came close to guessing the coordinates of the flag, which was placed at . Congratulations to Kenneth Wyatt, whose estimate of was within 4 feet of the flag.

I deleted the location info as a challange to you, the readers. Send me an email with your guess as to where this shot is located, along with the coordinates of the flag. The one who comes closest to guessing the lat/long of the flag by the end of January 2006 will be given a special gift - an 8x10 print (from my Website) of your choice! No fair looking at their past newsletters!

For more info on DeLorme's consumer and professional mapping software, check out www.delorme.com.

Good luck!

White Balance Card

Those of you who are serious digital shooters know how important getting the white balance correctly set is. This is especially a problem when shooting indoors, where the dominant light may be florescent, incandescent, sunlight or a combination of all!

I've been successfully using a product called the WhiBal card. WhiBal is a set of white/black card, and two shades of gray cards attached in one corner. I use the smaller cards, which are 2 x 3.5-inch in size. I can quickly fan them out, place them under the ambient light, shoot a test image and set the appropriate white balance (or custom white balance) in just a few seconds. By examining the first test shot, it's quite obvious whether I'm "in the groove", or not. Although a bit pricy, it has saved me a lot of time during commercial shoots in avoiding hours of post-processing. It's always best to get the shot right "in camera", rather than use Photoshop to fix things after the fact.

Check out: http://www.rawworkflow.com/products/whibal/index.html. Cost is $40 for the smaller size.

Camera Bags - #4

I travel a lot and when I'm on the job doing travel photography, I've always been a little leery in carrying a large bag of camera gear during the shoot, unless I have a photo assistant along. Don't we always have one of those handy? :-)

In any case, I'm always on the lookout for an equipment case or bag that doesn't say "steal me" in big letters. One thing I've used on occasion is the small-sized Igloo cooler, which is designed to hold a six-pack of drinks. It will typically hold 2-3 lenses and film or other accesories.

Recently, I discovered the Kelty "Hawk" model extended-size fanny pack at the newly-built Sportsman's Warehouse in Colorado Springs (located near the Citadel shopping mall). After reviewing the Kelty Web site, it appears this model is no longer current, but they have a very similar "Hawkeye" model.

The main compartment is 12 x 12 inches by 8 inches deep and should easily accomodate a large SLR with 1-2 lenses, plus many accessories and a flash with water bottle stuck into the outside pockets. It also includes several other pockets for smaller gear with a padded compartment for sunglasses. It can either be strapped around your waist or carries with a shoulder strap. This just looks like it's begging to be brought along on my next trip! Cost was $50.

Check out: http://www.kelty.com/Kelty/index.cfm?fuseaction=Packs.ShowProduct&type=pack&ID=254.

Camera Bags - #3

For general business travel with a minimal camera system, I discovered the Adarama Commander bag, which has three main compartments: (1) a front accessary compartment with many pockets for small stuff, (2) a center compartment with three divided pockets for camera gear and (3) a laptop compartment for small, to mid-sized, laptops. There is also a side pocket in back, which will hold magazines or file folders (sideways).

I've been using this case successfully for over a year now and am still as impressed as ever. While it will not hold a pro-sized camera, it will hold a regular-sized SLR with a couple lenses. I use the center to hold a compact camera, MP3 player, line cord for the laptop and several other miscellaneous gadgets.

The best part? It's only $40 from Adarama (http://www.adorama.com/GBCGY.html).

Camera Bags - #2

Since I travel a lot with full camera gear, I am always on the lookout for the "ultimate" carry-on bag in which to fit everything. For extended trips, I have always relied on the Lowepro Pro Trekker AW, a very large bag - these days, too large for legal carry-on.

When I heard about Think Tank Photo's "Airport Addicted" backpack, I immediately took an interest. It was designed from the start to fit in an overhead luggage bin, yet will hold a pro-sized camera system with laptop and includes numerous accessary pockets. It also has several options for holding full-sized tripods or a monopod on the side. It does not have a built-in roller system, as that would ahve taken away too much room for equipment - but does include the attachment system for an external 'wheelie".

The backpack includes a comfortable shoulder strap system, removable laptop "slipcase", a pocket for passport, plenty of dividers and a rain cover. It will easily accomodate a 400mm/2.8 or 500mm/4 lens.

For more info: www.thinktankphoto.com.

Jan. 7, 2006 - Note: I purchased this bag from Roberts Distributers in Indianapolis (http://www.robertsimaging.com). They're great to deal with and go out of their way to support photojournalists.

Camera Bags - #1

Like most serious photographers - especially those who travel extensively, I seem to always be looking for just the right sized camera bag for the particular application at the time; whether it be a light-weight field kit, sports shooting or when I need to take the whole enchilada.

As such, I've amassed a considerable colection of various bags, including fanny packs, belt systems and full-sized backpacks. Switching over from a consumer-sized to a pro-sized camera system didn't help matters; as I discovered I had "grown out of" most of my existing bags.

My very first bag - the LowePro Off Road (fanny pack / shoulder bag) was actually my most-used bag - easily holding a regular-sized D100 body with 80-200/2.8 (in external lens pouch), a normal zoom, wide-angle zoom, extension tube set, 1.4 teleconvertor and 105mm macro lens. Plus, it held a flash (external lens pocket) with all the other goodies needed (filters, cleaning gear, etc.). It was quite an amazing bag and I loved the fact it could be slung over a shoulder, hand-carried or attached to my waist.

When I was on the road, I occasionally switched over to the full-sized LowePro Pro Trekker All Weather - now slightly too large for carry-on (more on that in Camera Bags - #2). I always had an affinity for the smaller field kit and once I had switched over to the Canon 1D Mark 2 (a relativly large body) and corresponding f2.8 lenses (large, as well), I simply couldn't continue using my existing bags. In addition, since I was shooting digital extensively, I also needed a way to carry my laptop.

So enter the LowePro Stealth Reporter series (shown above). I ended up purchasing their 650 All Weather (AW) model. It can hold everything the Off Road could, plus my laptop. I tried adding their modular belt system, as I really prefer a waist-carry system, but found it was too heavy and kept sliding down or tending to tip outward. So, it's now purely a should carry bag. I've been using this now for the last year and it's working out well.

For more info: www.lowepro.com.